Heat generated during the operation of semiconductor components must be sufficiently dissipated to avoid component failure. As semiconductor components become smaller and more complex, the problem associated with the effective dissipation of heat increases.
Typically a metal heat sink is adhesively bonded onto the semiconductor chip, in which case metal particles may be added to the adhesive in order to allow better thermal conduction. It would be possible to increase the thermal conduction by soldering the heat sink directly onto the semiconductor chip. Nevertheless adhesives have hitherto been employed because the material of the semiconductor chip, for example SiO2, is not solderable.
There are known methods for producing a semiconductor component in which a solderable interlayer is applied onto the inactive rear side of a flip-chip such that a metal heat sink can subsequently be soldered. This method has the advantage that it allows substantially better thermal conduction compared with applying a heat sink via an adhesive. However, the method has only limited suitability for use with a semiconductor chip which is not designed as a flip-chip, but which is arranged with its rear side on a mounting substrate and is electrically connected thereto via bonding wires.